Jack County Museum

The Jack County Museum, located at 241 W. Belknap Street in Jacksboro, is housed in one of the oldest, if not the oldest, houses in Jack County. Mr. and Mrs. Stanley Cooper built the home in 1882 from materials freighted in by wagon from Jefferson, Texas. The Coopers paid for their home with $20 gold pieces.

The extra thick walls may be viewed inside where they extend beyond later additions to the house. There are 7 rooms with 4 being the original structure. Native stone chimneys constructed for the fireplaces in the front rooms are still standing and one fireplace is intact. The once wooden porch has been replaced with concrete and the wooden tapered porch post replaced with metal filigree.

When the last owner, Mrs. A.A. (Lottie) Files, died in December, 1987, her grandchildren offered to sell the home to the Jacksboro Chamber of Commerce to be used as a permanent site for the Jack County Museum.

This house witnessed the birth of the 'Corn Club' in Texas, later known as the 4-H Club, in 1907 when Tom M. Marks was the resident. Tom was a talented, educated man of many occupations; school teacher, superintendent, public entertainer, construction engineer for the railroad, farmer, editor of The Jacksboro News and special county agent for Jack County. While serving as special county agent, he felt there was a great need for new developments in farming methods. After failing to convince the local farmers of new changes, he turned to the youth of the area and organized 'The Corn Club' on September 8, 1907, in Jacksboro. New types of corn seed were distributed among the membership of 111 boys with each boy receiving one gallon of corn. The following year, 1908, the first county fair was held with an attendance of between 1000-2000 people. 'The Corn Club' survived and became the 4-H Clubs of America and the legacy of Tom Marks continues today. The work he did in the agricultural field is recognized by the United States Department of Agriculture.

Visitors enjoy the numerous artifacts related to early life in Jack County, as well as a vast collection of military exhibits, 4-H memorabilia, Jacksboro High School mementoes, along with cemetery records and genealogical records. On site is a restored 1880’s log cabin, a collection of early farm implements an out-building filled with pioneer life necessities.

Jack County pioneer living comes to life each year the first Saturday in June when visitors travel back in time to the early days of Jack County as they re-live the past and listen to tales of Texas history in and around Jack County during the museum's Pioneer Day .